West Ham Till I Die
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Nostalgia

Nostalgia Series; Kevin Lock

Kevin Lock was born on the 27th December 1953 in Plaistow. As a young lad he adored Bobby Moore and it was he who eventually took over the number six shirt worn by his hero for so many seasons. It was Kevin’s dream to pull on the claret and blue shirt and follow in the footsteps of his idol and indeed his dream was to come true. In fact he followed the exact same career path as Bobby – from West Ham to Fulham and then Southend. He used to sit in his bedroom when night games were being played at Upton Park and eagerly listen for the roar when West Ham scored. On Saturdays his dad would take him to games with a stool so that Kevin could stand by his dad near the tunnel in the old West Stand. He was obsessed with all things West Ham and he used to tell anyone who would listen that he would one day play for the Hammers. Kevin would often stand in queues for Bobby Moore’s autograph never realising that one day he would be playing alongside him at Upton Park.

The transition from fan to player was all too easy for Kevin. He graduated through the Newham and Essex schoolboys system before joining the West Ham ground staff aged fifteen and was soon in the company of the likes of Bobby Moore and other senior players. A footballing centre back with blond hair and a with deal of natural ability, it was not long before the comparisons were being made. Perhaps he was the “new Bobby Moore?” The weight of expectation and the unfair comparisons did not sit well with Kevin and they weighed heavily on his shoulders. He had represented England Youth and England U23’s but even Kevin knew that he could never live up to some of the expectancy that had materialised. He made his debut coming on as a midfield substitute for West Ham away to Sheffield United in 1971 in a 3-0 loss.

His first start in the team was two months later against Arsenal and Ernie Gregory, then West Ham reserve team boss, told Kevin to go and get a haircut the week before the game. He did but when he returned for training Ernie said “I told you to get a haircut.” Kevin truthfully told him that he had but the haircuts did not meet Ernie’s exacting standards and he was sent back to the barbers. That happened three times that week before Ernie was satisfied and eventually a well shorn Kevin Lock made his full debut! Kevin was ever present in the 1974/5 season after Bobby Moore had left for Fulham. The highlight of his career was undoubtedly the FA Cup final win that season wearing the number six for West Ham when ironically his hero was playing for the opposition. He, like many of us, would have had mixed emotions that day. By now he had formed a central defensive partnership with Tommy Taylor and I am sure, for those that remember, Ernie Gregory would not have been happy with either players hair! Kevin Lock went on to make 153 appearances for West Ham over seven seasons with the club. A third of those appearances were in the Cup winning season.

Three seasons later in 1978 and after the Hammers had been relegated, Kevin joined Fulham where he played over 200 games before finishing his career in a brief spell at Southend United.

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